Mecca. "Have the bards who preceded me left any theme unsung? What therefore shall be my subject? Love only must supply my lay." Such is the commencement of his admirable poem, well known to English readers through the version published by our illustrious Jones, who, as it appears, designed to have given, in a preliminary essay, some anecdotes of the Bedouin hero: whether he fulfilled this intention we have not ascertained, but Antar is noticed (chiefly as a poet) by D'Herbelôt, Reiske, Willmet, De Sacy, Menil, and other learned men. The work before us presents him to our view conspicuous through a series of extraordinary adventures in love and war; adventures the more interesting, since we know from indisputable authority, that however marvellous the narrative of his life, it is founded on fact; and that Antar is not merely a creature of the imagination. It is generally understood that we are indebted for the publication of this volume to the learned author of " Remarks on several Parts of Turkey, Egyptiaca," &c. brother of the ingenious translator. In a short introduction the Editor observes, that some traditionary tales (current in the eighth century) probably furnished materials for this romance, to "Osmay, one of the eminent scholars who adorned the courts of Haroun-al-Raschid, and of his two learned successors, Al-Amyn and Al-Mamoun; and it still continues to be the principal source whence the story-tellers of the coffee-houses in Egypt, Syria, and Arabia, draw their most interesting tales." What portion of the original work is contained in the English translation, does not appear; but from our gleanings in the library of an orientalist, we are enabled to confirm, what travellers have mentioned, that the Arabic story is of considerable length; extending, if we may credit some accounts, to sixty volumes; of which, it is said, thirty-five have been lately purchased in the East by that celebrated German orientalist Mr. Hammer, and deposited in the Imperial Academy at Vienna. Those sixty volumes (which we may, perhaps, venture to suppose only sections or chapters) constitute that great body of Arabian romance intitled "Seiret Abúal Fouares "The history سيرة ابو الفوارس عنة رابن شاد "; Antar ibn Shedad the father (or chief) of horsemen, Antar the son of Shedad ;" exhibiting the manners and customs of a period which may be styled the golden age before Mohammed. Of this work Sir William Jones had seen the fourteenth volume (and that only), when he composed his excellent commentary on Asiatic poetry; wherein (cap. xvii.) he describes the book "de Antara et Abla amoribus," as abounding See "The Moallakót, or Seven Arabian Poems, which were suspended on the Temple at Mecca," &c. Lond. 1783. 4to. p. 60. with all that is elegant, magnificent and sublime; " Nihil est elegans, nihil magnificum, quod huic operi deesse putem.' "Ita sanè excelsum est," &c. It may be remarked, that he writes the name of our Bedouin chief Antara, while D'Herbelôt and others express it by Antarah. In the original Arabic we often perceive the final h; but the title above quoted (of the MS. history) agrees with Mr. Hamilton in giving the name simply Antar, عبس عنتر Those who read the eventful story of Antar's loves with the beautiful Ibla, as, or Abla, will probably not feel less interested in his favor, from the consideration that his mother was black and a captive -his father, however, was a prince of the tribe of Abs, and he raised himself, as the learned Editor observes, by the heroic qualities.which he displayed from his earliest youth, and by his extraordinary genius for poetry, from the state of slavery in which he was born, to the confidence of his king, and to a pre-eminence above all the chiefs of Arabia." That he was born some years before Mohammed, is the opinion of a distinguished orientalist, Reiske; and we know that the pseudo-prophet came into this world (in 571) as the scourge of nations, whilst Chosroes, surnamed Nushirvan, still occupied the Persian throne, which he had ascended in 531. At the court of this monarch, our romance (we mean this English version) leaves the Bedouin hero on the very threshhold of those sacred edifices, concerning which some antiquaries of the present day might expect satisfactory and curious information from a work composed, most probably in the eighth century, while many altars still glowed with Zoroaster's holy flame.-"I wish, my lord," said Antar to the Vizier, "that you would introduce me to the temples of fire." Thus closes, with most provoking abruptness, the volume before us; no farther continuation of Antar's story having as yet been communicated to the Editor. It is natural to inquire the fate of illustrious warriors, to ask by what manner of death those perished, who in their time had caused hundreds to bite the dust. That Antar fell by the hand, or at least the contrivance, of Wazr-ben-gzaber, who afterwards embraced the Mohammedan faith, we learn from some writers; but Abu Obaida informs us that the mighty hero, having attained to a considerable age, died through the effects of cold. The learned Editor has well defined those characteristics that mark the real Arabs or Bedouins, and which this work exhibits in their native simplicity: "an eager desire for the property of their neighbour; an unconquerable fondness for strife and battle; a singular combination of profuse hospitality with narrow economy; quick perception; deep cunning; great personal courage; a keen sense of honor; respect for their women; and a warm admiration and ready use of the poetical beauties of their unrivalled lan guage."It is not improbable, he thinks, that Antar was well known to the early European writers of romantic adventures, who followed the age of Charlemagne ; but whether his singular story inspired them with a taste for chivalrous exploits, "is a question to the solution of which we may look forward, when the whole of it shall be before the public. It may be observed, however, that little more was wanting in order to compose the romances of the middle age, than to engraft on the war, love and courtesy of the Arabs, the splendid and soft luxuries of the other countries of the East, the witchcraft of Africa, the religious fervour of the south of Europe, and the gloomy superstitions of the north."Introd. p. vii. We know the difficulties of translation from Eastern languages, especially where poetry is so thickly interspersed as in the romance of Antar; but those difficulties, it is evident, Mr. Hamilton has long since conquered. That he may continue and finish his arduous undertaking, must be the wish of all who, like ourselves, have derived considerable pleasure from the commencement: and we advise him to persevere in the style which he has adopted, retaining, wherever practicable, without actual barbarisms, the original Arabic idioms. The energy and simplicity of Antar's sentiments are most happily expressed in oriental phraseology. If we clothe the Bedouin hero too strictly in an European dress, we render him as ridiculous as those effeminate coxcombs contemptuously styled dandies; and the utmost art of a Parisian milliner would but deprive the beautiful Ibla of her native loveliness. ADVERSARIA LITERARIA. No. xix. FRAGMENT of a POEM on the ACTIAN WAR, copied from a MANUSCRIPT taken from HERCULANEUM; supposed to be written by C. RABIRIUS. 'The letters in the smaller type were inserted by CIAMPITTII; as those he considered appropriate for filling up passages which could not be deciphered. BELLA FIDE DEXTRAQVE POTENS RERVMQUE PER V sum COL. II. funeraque adCEDVNT PATRiis deforMIA TerRIS QuID• cAPITIS Iam caPTA IACENt QVAE praemia belli ? HAEC MIHI CVM · dominA PLEBES QVOQVE nunc sibi VICTRIX VINDICAT hanc faMVLAM ROMANA POTEntia taNDEM. COL. III. fas et ALEXANDRO thAlaMOS iNtRaRE DEORVM DICO ETIAM dOLVISSE DEAM VIDISSe triumphoS PARS ETIAM IMperII. QVAE FEMINĂ. TanTA? VITORuM COL. IV. SAEPE Ego QVAE VEteRIS CVraE seRMONIBVs angor QVI SPreVIT NOStraEQVE MORI PRO NOMINE GENTIS qVID · VELIT · INCERTVM · EST, TERris qVIBVS, AUT . QVIBVS VNDIS COL. V. delectVMQue foruM Quo noXIA TVRBA COIRET, PRAEBERETQVE SVAE SPECTACVLA· TRisTIA MORTIS. hic cAdit absumtus fERRO, TumeT· IILE VENeno, aVT. PEndenTe suIS CERVICIBVS ASPIDE MOLLEM LABITur iN SOMNVM TRAHITVRQVE · LIBIDINE · MORTIS.. PERCulit adFLATV BREVIS HVNC SINE MORSIBVS ANguis VOLNERE SEV TeNVI PARS INLITA · PARVA · VenENI. INtERSAEPTAM ANIMAM PRESSIS EFFVNDERE VENIS.. ImMERSISQVE fretO CLAVSERVNT GVTTVRA· FAVCES. hAS INTER StRAGES SOLIO DESCENDIT eT⚫ INTER A.. SIC ILLI INteR Se mISERO serMoNe fRVVNTVR HAEC REGINA GERIT: PROCVL HAnc OccultA VIDEBAT. CONSILIA INTErITVs, QVAM IAM sua fatA MANERENT ET PATRIAE COMITANTE SVAE CVM MILite CAESAR GENTIS · ALEXANdrI · CupiENs AD· moEnia VENIT SIGNAQVE CONSTITVIT. SIC OMN is terROR IN ARTVM, COL. VIII. obtereRE adnisi PORtarVm clAVSTRa pEr VRBEM, OPSIDIONE. TAMEN NeC CORPORA MOENIBVS ArceNT, Remarks on two Passages of Sophocles, Ed. Br. Ω τέκνα, Κάδμου τοῦ πάλαι νέα τροφή, Ed. Tyr. v. 1. Brunck translates véa Tpoon nova progenies; Potter and Franclin, “youthful progeny." Brunck's translation of véa may be defended, though I think hodierna would be more appropriate. Youthful is evidently wrong. Edipus saw before him an assemblage of persons, some of whom were children, verrol, nestlings scarcely fledged, ouδέ πω μακρὰν πτέσθαι σθένοντες ; some were weighed down with years, σuv yipa Bapeïs; and others, the flower of the Theban youth. The monarch, addressing them collectively, certainly would not style them "youthful progeny:" and should it be said that the king would naturally be more attracted by the young folks than by the senior part of the company, and consequently address himself to the former, I beg leave to observe that in this case the opposition, which I think every one must allow to exist between vea and тou Táλai, would be entirely lost sight of; νέα τροφὴ is ἡ τροφὴ νῦν οὖσα τοῦ Κάδμου Táλaι ovτos, the now existing offspring (whether young or old) of the formerly existing Cadmus-the modern (if I may be allowed the expression) offspring of the ancient Cadmus, or, in fewer words, the representatives of Cadmus, as we call the living head of an ancient family the representative of the house of Russel, &c. Ai dè vuxíav åπò pinäv. Ed. Col. v. 1248. "aliæ nocturnis splendentibus astris," Br. Musgrave understands the poet to allude to the Riphæan mountains, and quotes a passage from Aristotle strongly in favor of this interpretation. However, I cannot help differing from both these able scholars, and still continue to give the passage that sense which on my first reading the play I thought the author intended to convey: viz. by vuxíav pinay I understand the northern lights. I do not know how the poet could have more |